Karla Sofía Gascón and Itziar Ituño to Star in Satanic-Politics Series 'When Devils Rule'

Oscar nominee Karla Sofía Gascón and Money Heist star Itziar Ituño have signed on to lead When Devils Rule (Los demones mandan), a six-part Spanish series blending political thriller with supernatural satire. The project pitches at Tallinn's TV Beats Co-Financing Market on Nov. 16-17, where it competes for the Council of Europe Series Co-Production Development Award worth €50,000 ($56,000).

Atlantika Films produces. The banner is also behind the Movistar Plus Original Patagonia, an eco-thriller premiering in January 2027 and repped at Mipcom by ZDF Studios.

What's the story?

The series' logline is blunt: "demons hide in plain sight, manipulating the powerful and pulling the strings of a world sliding into chaos." Creator-producer Nano Arrieta, founder of Atlantika and a long-time collaborator of Oscar-winner Fernando Trueba, developed it with Claudia Ruíz.

Arrieta, currently drafting the pilot with Basque screenwriter Ibai Ariztegi, told Variety the show loosely adapts Argentine author Manuel Mujica Lainez's novel The Journey of the Seven Demons. He explained the twist: "In the book, the demons are basically settled in Hell because they have already done their job, and the Devil sends them back out into the world to collect souls. But looking at the world we live in today, our feeling was: the demons are already here. You only have to look at genocide, the rise of fascism, political extremism and everything that is happening around us."

So it's not a literal adaptation. The creators kept the book's DNA and reworked its ideas of evil, temptation and power for the present day.

Who do the leads play?

Gascón, nominated for an Oscar for Emilia Pérez, plays Manuela, a teacher at an elite school. Ituño takes the role of Evita, personal secretary to the prime minister of the series' fictional country. This reunites Ituño with director Rodrigo Susarte (Hidden Island, Gen Mishina) and Atlantika after Patagonia.

Arrieta stresses the series rests on four heroines, not its demons. "Those women come from a very ordinary, working-class environment, but whose jobs actually represent some of the pillars that keep society functioning. One works in care, another in education, another in healthcare and another in journalism," he said. Connected through a community center, they help neighbors and migrants where institutions fail — and set out to unmask demons living in human disguise.

What does the casting signal?

On Gascón, Arrieta said: "I have known Karla for some time, and she has always been extremely generous with us. We had been looking for the right project to work on together because it needed to be something ambitious, something with real quality and something that genuinely made sense for her. And it feels like this may be that project."

On Ituño: "Working with her is genuinely a joy. She is incredibly intelligent, generous and instinctive as an actress, and on a personal level she has also become a very good friend." He added: "Having both of them together is obviously incredibly exciting because they are two very powerful actresses, but they also have very strong personalities and voices beyond the screen, which feels completely aligned with what the series wants to talk about."

Remaining key cast is still in negotiation.

How will it be financed?

Around 60% of the Spanish production costs will be covered by the Basque region's tax incentive, according to Arrieta. He is now seeking "platforms, broadcasters, financiers, creative or production partners who want to come on board at the development stage and help us build the strongest, highest quality version of the series possible."

A Tallinn win or a platform deal in the coming months would determine how fast this development-stage project moves toward production.